


Stay by My Side

by Enikawa_Moriko



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Accidental Marriage, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Declarations Of Love, Human Lance (Voltron), M/M, Meet-Cute, Selkie Keith (Voltron), Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-28
Updated: 2018-12-28
Packaged: 2019-09-28 04:29:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17175914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Enikawa_Moriko/pseuds/Enikawa_Moriko
Summary: Lance didn't mean to marry the guy, really.





	Stay by My Side

**Author's Note:**

  * For [wayfared](https://archiveofourown.org/users/wayfared/gifts).



> there is a selkie!lance tag but not a selkie!keith one. rude.  
> content warning: blatant disregard for some selkie mythology logic i changed to suit my needs. and overuse of the word "soft". don't judge. they're soft boys.  
> happy holidays max, i hope you like this!! forgive me i'm late ~~again~~. you asked for fluffly klance and i found this perfect prompt on tumblr and here we are. some surprise angst tried to sneak up on me but i think i fought it off pretty well.
> 
> the title is inspired by [this](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pRTo7iU3vCA) by the line _we will be the laughter in the riffles/just stay here with me_.
> 
> also thanks to my wonderful buddy [lance](http://oblueboio.tumblr.com) for reading this over for me!

Lance didn’t intend for this to happen. He didn’t mean to marry the guy, really. He was just doing his job.

It was a day like every other in his, frankly mundane, nineteen-years-long life. He was holding a cup of a freshly brewed coffee which he was bringing to one of the customers at one of the tables near the far end of the room. Table seventeen… seventeen… seventeen…

He had just come back from his break when Hunk, his best friend as well as a co-worker at Beezer’s Beans shoved the drink into his hands and told him to bring it there, so he wasn’t even sure who to look out for, having only the table number to go by.

Finally coming close enough to notice his customer, several things happened at once.

Lance thought: _oh fuck, he’s cute._

At the same time, his hip brushed something incredibly soft and… fuzzy? Something bright and red flashed in the corner of his eye but he was too busy making sure the wobbling cup’s contents stayed inside of it where they were supposed to be.

He almost thought he was in the clear when the red flash – a jacket, he realized belatedly – which made its way down the backrest of the cute customer’s chair tangled into his legs just as he was putting the coffee mug down. Flailing, he dropped the coffee onto the table.

Thankfully, the mug didn’t break, as he really didn’t need _that_ to be taken out of his payroll, but that was about the only good thing. While the distance it fell was relatively short, it still touched down onto the tabletop with much more force than necessary and Lance watched in slow motion as it tilted on its side, hot coffee spilling towards the customer. In a last-ditch attempt at rescuing him, he flung himself at the other boy, his bony torso a protective wall between the scalding liquid and the damsel in (Lance-induced) distress.

“I’m so sorry!” he shrieked and then hissed in pain as the hot coffee puddle reached the edge of the table and touched his back, soaking through the crisp white shirt of his working attire. Embarrassment hot on his cheeks, he freed the customer caged between his arms, mouth opening and closing like a fish’s but no words coming out.

The guy opened his mouth to say something instead, irritation clear on his face. Very not ready to be yelled at by a customer, Lance panicked, getting out a squeaky: “I’ll be right back!” and sprinting across the café, weaving expertly between the tables to get something to clean the mess he had made.

Ignoring Hunk’s disappointed stare and the other customers’ confused looks, he maneuvered through the tables back to number seventeen. Keeping a constant stream of apologies, he began cleaning the spillage, not giving the guy an opportunity to get out a word for himself – he didn’t look like he was going to yell at him anymore, but Lance wasn’t taking any chances.

Such a pity. The guy was really attractive and Lance had hoped to flirt with him a bit, maybe get his number, but he didn’t dare to annoy the guy any more, nor was he able to muster up any of his usual charm and faux confidence after such an enormous fuck up.

Still beating himself up for it, he noticed the customer was yet to pick up his jacket, lying behind his chair. Gingerly picking it up, he returned it, smiling sheepishly.

The guy’s eyes went wide.

Lance didn’t understand – maybe he was embarrassed? It was a bright red jacket, cropped so short its purpose couldn’t be anything but purely aesthetical – but the guy was attractive enough to pull off nearly anything, that was for sure. It was a strange garment – it seemed fuzzy both times Lance touched it, but by the look of it, it wasn’t made of anything even remotely fuzzy – it looked more like leather to Lance. Nor had it any right to feel as soft as it did.

The guy kept gazing at him owlishly, so Lance apologized profusely yet again, grabbed the soaked wet rag off the table and made his way back to the counter. Burying his head in Hunk’s broad back, he groaned.

“Please put me out of my misery, I beg you,” he whined. “There is no way I can go on living after this.”

Hunk had the audacity to laugh.

“No can do, buddy.”

******

The following day, the guy was back.

Lance couldn’t believe his own eyes for a moment – had he been a victim to such an incident, he would never return to the café again.

But this guy was here, lounging in a chair at the very same table, sipping coffee brought to him by one of the other waiters on shift that afternoon. Lance watched him as he was serving a customer two tables over – it was really him, down to the dark, silky hair, unblemished porcelain skin and piercing purple eyes.

How was he even real?

Lance could always appreciate beauty, but he usually wasn’t one to wax poetics adorned with flowery adjectives whenever he saw someone remotely appearing. But this guy…

Unknowingly, he stalked over to number seventeen, opening his mouth before he realized what he was doing. Regaining a semblance of control of his own behavior, he quickly shut it and barely managed to stop before he made an even bigger ass out of himself than he had already achieved yesterday.

He was about to awkwardly slink away when the attractive customer noticed him.

Lance’s ears were burning, but there was a shade of pink in the other’s cheeks as well, a wonderful and ever-growing blush spilling across his round cheeks. Lance almost had a cardiac arrest right on the spot.

The guy shuffled awkwardly, head ducking and few strands of his hair slipping to cover his face. Lance gripped the wrist of his left hand tightly to prevent himself from reaching out to tuck them behind the customer’s ear.

 _Get a grip, Lance!_ chided his inner voice, sounding suspiciously like a disappointed Hunk. _You don’t even know him! He’s basically a stranger!_

The guy mumbled something unintelligible under his breath.

“Huh?” Lance said, full of his usual wit.

“Keith,” he repeated, blush growing steadily stronger. “My name.”

Lance’s answer just then had been stunned silence. He didn’t feel worthy of knowing the guy’s… well, anything, after the fuck up yesterday, but after a while of staring, he managed to get out a soft: “Lance.”

The g- no, _Keith_ smiled and Lance wasn’t sure how long was his heart able to go on like this. This – this should be illegal! Nobody has any right going around smiling like this! The corners of his mouth curled upwards in the softest way, showing the dimple in his right cheek, while his nose scrunched up so adorably, Lance had to physically restrain himself from reaching out _again._ Somebody, call the police, please. Immediately.

Suddenly very aware of the awkward silence, he began shifting uncomfortably, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly.

Keith looked nervous as well, fingers playing with the hem of his grey t-shirt, although Lance had no idea why. He took a deep breath, as if steeling himself for something, but then he let it out and grabbed the menu, eyes flicking over it with interest.

“I’m in a mood for a dessert. Can you recommend me anything?”

******

Keith coming to the coffee shop every time Lance was on became a regular occurrence over the course of the next two weeks. The first two or three times he stayed back at the faraway table seventeen, but once he came in during the rush hour on Friday, the only free table remained the one in the front, just next to the counter. Hunk, sharing a shift with Lance for the first time since The Incident, gave him a Look. A look that was kind of pitying, but also smug and a tiniest bit confused. The corners of his lips tugged upwards and Lance knew exactly what was going on in his mind. He was sorry for Lance, for having to face the guy again, but also very ready to tease the hell out of him for making such an idiot out of himself without a pinch of mercy. Lance couldn’t blame him – Hunk had been there in the past for enough of Lance’s escapades for his conclusions to be entirely reasonable.

Still, rude.

Lance went through the motions of preparing the now-familiar drink, adding a pump of whipped cream on top. With the drink in hand, he strutted towards Keith’s table, putting the coffee down with a flourish. Keith looked up at him, eyes soft, smile tugging at his lips, but then he frowned: “I didn’t ask for whipped cream.”

“Well hello to you, too,” Lance smiled. “It’s on the house.”

“I am-“

“It’s lactose-free.”

Keith looked up at him again, blush high on his cheeks, _again._ “How did you…”

“You told me last time.”

Keith smiled softly, this time in full power, and it took Lance all his self-control not to clutch at his heart to make sure it wasn’t melting off his chest.

“I’ll be back in a second,” he promised, skipping back towards the counter where Hunk was staring at him disbelievingly.

Lance smirked, suddenly on cloud nine: “Why that surprised look, my dear friend?”

“What _was_ that?” Hunk demanded.

“That was Keith.”

_“Keith?!”_

“Yeah. You don’t have to sound so surprised.”

Hunk leveled him with one of his Looks. “You and I both know that’s a lie.”

“Okay. He came here the day after that and we – talked?”

“You mean you almost killed him with his own coffee and he came _back_ and the two of you _talked_?”

“Okay, we didn’t talk that much the first time, mostly just stared at each other awkwardly. But he told me his name.”

Hunk raised an eyebrow. “And you have his coffee order memorized.”

Lance looked sideways.

“Holy shit, bro, I have eyes, I know he’s cute, but you got it _bad._ ”

“Shut up.

******

They fell into a comfortable routine. Whenever Lance had work, Keith came by (Lance actually had no idea how Keith knew his schedule but he never missed a single shift). After that Friday, he kept sitting in his new spot next to the counter so they could stay closer to each other and chat. Keith sat with his coffee while Lance worked and they sat together whenever there was a lull in the customers. They talked about everything from school to work to Lance’s family. He found out Keith was a marine biology student which _blew_ Lance’s mind – how did they not crossed paths sooner? Keith just smiled – softly, mysteriously – and ducked his head to take a bit of his macaroon. Sometimes, he bought a dessert along with his coffee, but more often than not Lance slipped him something free of charge. He wasn’t sure how much longer was he going to get away with it, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to ask Allura, his manager, directly. No way in hell.

Lance was happy – Keith was funny and snarky and smart and oh, so, so pretty – and blushed easily and even through his terrible fashion sense and the (Extremely soft and fluffy looking) mullet, Lance’s heart took to skipping a beat whenever he smiled, a soft quirk of his lips, gorgeous and private, for Lance’s eyes only. He made it his life mission to make Keith smile as often as possible.

Keith still acted strangely – Lance could sometimes feel his eyes follow him as he bustled along the coffee shop, sometimes he would open his mouth to say something and then stop, averting his eyes. A few times, he reached into his jacket’s inner pocket but his hand always came back up empty. Lance knew something was off, but he wasn’t going to push.

******

“Lance?” asked Keith one day, about three weeks in, suddenly serious.

“Is there anything wrong?” Lance stopped midway through his anecdote about his little sister’s adventures in ice skating practice, voice laden with concern.

“Can we talk?”

Lance wanted to play dumb, say something like _but we’re already talking,_ but he didn’t. Instead, he looked around the busy café and said: “I’m on closing shift today. Wait for me?”

Keith smiled gratefully, dimple showing again. “Okay,” he replied softly. In contrast with his expression, his hands curled tightly into fists and worry and nerves danced in his eyes. It hurt Lance to see him so wound up, so unsteady. In a split-second decision. He covered Keith’s fists with his own hands, uncurling them gently and squeezing.

“It’s going to be okay,” he said with more resolve than he actually possessed. “Whatever it is you’re worried about, it’s going to be fine.”

Keith’s smile widened, even though just fractionally, and Lance’s heart felt warm.

******

Lance was on edge for the rest of his shift, catching himself drumming his fingers on every available surface, tapping his leg incessantly, polishing the counter again and again and probably annoying the shit out of his colleague. Every time he caught himself doing any of it, he willed himself to stop, but that only served to make him even more pent up. What could Keith want to talk about?

Was he a criminal on the run? Maybe a serial killer with a need to confess his crimes before he killed Lance, too? Did he piss off some big mafia boss and needed a place to hide? Did he… every idea was crazier than the other, buzzing around in Lance’s brain and driving him mad.

When the time finally came to close the shop, he willed himself to clean every table properly, even though every cell in him screamed to just run away. Or tun to Keith. Or… well, do anything to relieve this uncertainty.

The fact Keith’s face was white as a sheet and he kept biting his bottom lip so hard Lance was sure he was going to break skin did nothing to help.

Taking a deep breath, he pocketed the keys to the shop, flicked off the lights and walked over to Keith.

“So….” He started, unsure.

Keith had a deer-in-the-headlights look to him, seemingly wanting to be anywhere but here. Lance tried to smile reassuringly, but it came out more like a nervous grimace.

Keith seemed to steel himself, regaining a bit of color.

“So, we need to talk. I… I’m sorry I should have probably done this much sooner. It was bad form from me and I apologize. But I was… nervous. I’ve never done this before. Obviously.”

Nothing about this seemed obvious to Lance, but he didn’t dare to interrupt.

Keith took another deep breath, warmth flooding his cheeks, looking beautiful in the dark coffee ship illuminated only by the lights from the street outside.

Reaching into his jacket – a familiar motion by now – he took out the mystery object. It was… a small box? Velvet, like those boxes you put jewelry in.

Lance blinked in confusion.

“At first, I thought it wasn’t necessary, but I talked to Shiro and Adam and they insisted. And they’re right, you know. We should be married by human customs as well.”

Lance stopped short. Did he hear correctly?

_“What?”_

Keith blinked at him. “Is this… not how it’s usually done? Did I do something wrong?”

_“Married?”_

Keith gave him a confused look: “Yes? Married. Bonded. Wed. United. Mated. Whatever.”

“What are you _talking_ about?”

A flash of hurt crossed Keith’s delicate features: “My coat. Well, jacket. But my point still stands. You took it, the first time we met.”

Lance frowned, not understanding. “I picked it up. And?”

“And that makes us married. I thought you knew.”

“You thought I _knew?_ What the ever-loving _fuck_ , Keith?!”

“Hey, I don’t make the rules. That’s just how things work with selkie magic.”

“Selkie? _Magic?!_ ” Lance spluttered.

Keith looked taken aback. “Yeah. If you take their coat from a selkie, poof, you automatically become bonded for life. Married.”

“Am I dreaming?” Lance found himself asking. “Aren’t selkie, like, those sea lion people from the legends?”

“Seal.”

_“Seal people from the legends. Whatever.”_

Keith raised an eyebrow. “Shouldn’t you know the difference, Mr. Marine Biology Student?”

“Is this really what are you going to focus on? You’re telling me you’re this- _seal person_ and I apparently _married you_?!”

“Hey, you wouldn’t appreciate being called a chimpanzee either, would you? Sea lions are just so _rude,_ ” Keith replied hotly, but then averted his sight and it was as if all the fight had left him, shoulders slumping dejectedly. “So… you really didn’t know?”

Lance shook his head. A shadow of… disappointment? washed over Keith’s face and he gripped the small box in his hand tightly – a _ring_ box, Lance realized. Brain torn between shock and hysteria, he did his best to suppress a fit of manic laughter.

“I’m really sorry. I know this is all really unfair to you. There… there is one way out though,” Keith spoke up softly.

Lance looked up. “Wait, really?”

“Yeah.” Keith seemed – nervous. “You just need to return my coat.”

“But… I already did that, right after.”

“You didn’t know what were you doing then. I thought that meant…. Never mind. You didn’t know, so that’s why you only returned my jacket back then. You still have the actual coat.”

At that, Keith did something with his hand and a faint green flicker showed a ghost of soft, fuzzy coat sleeves over Lance’s arms. He blinked, but it was already gone.

“The jacket is just a cover. A mimicry,” explained Keith. “Back then, you gave me my jacket, but kept the actual coat.”

“So – I just… give this back to you? That’s all?”

Keith nodded grimly. “You do and then I’m gone, for good.”

 _Gone._ Lance’s heart pounded in his chest. That didn’t sound good.

“What does that mean?”

“If you give me back my coat, I’ll return to the sea, forever.”

“So your options are basically to marry me or spend the rest of your life as a seal?!”

Keith smiled, a little sadly, and shrugged.

“But that’s so not fair!”

Keith made a ‘what can you do’ shrug and shuffled his feet. “Well. Let’s get this over with. I don’t think I will ever be ready for that, so really, there is no use in waiting.”

“What? You’re just – just giving up on your life, on your future, so I can get… un-married – you’re willing to just leave everything behind like that?”

Keith looked him in the eye seriously. “Lance – selkies bond for life. That’s a big commitment. If you truly didn’t know, I cannot ask that of you. Look how freaked out you are, just by the thought of it! I cannot ask you to spend your whole life with a guy you don’t even like out of pity or some twisted sense of responsibility for me-“

Lance, not knowing what else to do, grabbed Keith’s hands, pulling him close.

“It’s – it’s not that! I want you! I really like you!”

“You don’t have to _force_ yourself, Lance. You need to think about your future, too!”

“ _You_ need to think about your future. And I’m not! I really, really, really like you. Hell, the entire coat thing happened because you were just looking so _handsome_ and _pretty_ and I wasn’t ready and-“

Keith’s eyes were wide, like saucers. “You…”

“I felt so happy when you came back and you brighten my day every time I see your face. You’re so smart and funny and _gorgeous_ and I couldn’t believe someone like _you_ would even give me his time of the day – but. But I wanted to court you properly, show you how awesome you are, take you on – on all the dates! I dreamed about taking you to the mall and to the park behind the campus library and to the beach and imagined what it would be like to introduce you to my parents. And god, Keith, do you know how much time I spent dreaming about holding your hand and tucking your hair – goddammit, your _hair,_ behind your fucking _ear_ and how many of my shifts I spent looking for ways to make you laugh? But – but. You shouldn’t be forced to stay with me just so you can continue to go on with your life. That’s – that’s just terrible. I cannot believe I’ve put you in this position. You must hate me now. I’m so, so sorry Keith.”

Keith looked back at him, astonished: “Lance. Lance, listen to me. I cannot imagine a better person to be stuck with. I have no idea how can you not realize how fucking _bright_ you are. You’re so kind and generous and funny and freaking _incredible_ and you make me feel so damn _welcome_ every time. And if I didn’t fall in love with you that first day – really, your flailing was quite charming, believe it or not – then I did over and over again every time we met since then.”

Stunned, Lance managed to breathe out: “You sure? This isn’t just the magic messing with your head to make you think you like me or something?”

Keith pressed his lips together into a thin line. “Absolutely sure.”

He looked so perfect, stars in his eyes and lights from the outside dancing in his hair, gazing up at Lance with utmost trust and Lance was weak, oh so weak, and he didn’t deserve this beautiful boy but somehow he had _got_ him, had him right there and maybe not the way he imagined, but maybe it was okay to _want._ This was something far greater than he could ever envision, and he still had no idea what they were going to do – they were _nineteen_ for fuck’s sake, they – or at least Lance – could barely take care of themselves. This was going to be hard, there were so many bumps along the road that awaited them, many of which they couldn’t prepare for. But at that moment, none of it mattered. They were going to figure this out. He and Keith.

He leaned down and captured Keith’s lips with his own and it was awkward and inexperienced and _perfect_ and Keith shifted to reciprocate, hands finding their way down to Lance’s hips, fitting over them just _right_ and at that moment, he couldn’t be happier.

Separating but staying close enough for their noses to bump, so they still breathed the same air, he suddenly became very aware of his hands, one buried in Keith’s hair – really, even softer than he thought, how was he even _real_ and the other stroking along his dimpled cheek gently. He could see the tiniest freckles dotting along Keith’s nose, so inconspicuous he hadn’t noticed them until now. He couldn’t resist, dropping a peck on the tip of Keith’s nose because he could _do_ that now. Because Keith was his and he was Keith and nothing made sense but at the same time everything _did,_ falling into place like a puzzle. He felt as if one of the pieces, lost for so long he forgot it even existed, suddenly returned to its spot and it gave him this sense of _completeness_ and… and…

Sliding his hands down to fold the other boy into his arms, he hugged him tightly until they were cheek to cheek, swaying to a nonexistent tune. With his nose in Keith’s hair, he mumbled right next to his ear, even though no one else was there.

“Go on a date with me. Right now.”

Keith answering smile filled him with warmth to such extent he was afraid he might _burst._

“Sure thing, _husband._ ”

******

**Author's Note:**

> so! i hope you enjoyed it!! i actually wrote a [werewolf!keith/human!lance fic](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16588814) not so long ago... i might make a series outta this-  
> as always, feedback gives me life, no matter the form! this definitely sounded better in my head and it was fighting me quite a lot at points so I would love to hear what you think.  
> (please yell at me if you find any grammar errors i crave perfection)
> 
> find me @ the hellsite; my artblog is [@dyinginjapanese](http://dyinginjapanese.tumblr.com)
> 
>  
> 
> [this is the prompt this was inspired by.](https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/496023061426864128/527052929845297152/Screenshot_20181126-130141_Tumblr.jpg)


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